Lu Ding nodded, then looked toward the black convoy ahead.
Someone among them shouted into a radio.
"Fuck, if they're not even afraid of Bureau 749, what the hell are we scared of? If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up. Move! Get our stuff back!!"
At the command, car doors swung open, and dozens of masked fiends from the Heavenly Principle Sect flew out, landing on the roofs.
The convoy spread out, gradually advancing as it hemmed in Wen Yuquan and Yin Feng's car.
Meteor hammer in hand, Yin Feng flipped onto the roof.
"There's a second round? Perfect, I hadn't had my fill yet. Come on!!!"
Wen Yuquan also drew his two blades, one long and one short.
Looking at the empty-handed Lu Ding beside him, he asked, "Do you have a weapon?"
Lu Ding slowly floated up above the roof. He extended a hand and spread his fingers, unleashing countless slashes. The sound of flesh being sliced rang out without end.
Blood spurted, spraying freely like a rain of blood.
"I don't need a weapon."
Lu Ding's voice was quiet, yet extraordinarily stunning.
So this was his true combat strength.
Ever since acquiring the skill That Which Is Called Forgetting Form, which let him manually enter the state of Unity of Heaven and Humanity, Lu Ding had never turned it off.
Movement and combat did affect the efficiency of That Which Is Called Forgetting Form.
But it was still quite useful, faster even than a qi refiner of average talent cultivating with complete focus.
And so Lu Ding's combat strength was growing rapidly every moment.
Walking, fighting, or simply going about his day-all of it was cultivation for him.
That strike stunned Wen Yuquan and Yin Feng, and it also shocked the Heavenly Principle Sect members.
He had instantly killed several people with a single move, leaving none of their bodies whole.
How were they supposed to fight that?
Losing courage before the battle even began was a grave taboo.
Seeing morale sink, the commander of the Heavenly Principle Sect's mission could no longer sit still.
"Cutting my people down like vegetables? That's not very nice."
The man wore a snake-head mask and looked over with an icy air.
Lu Ding looked at him. "If you have a problem with it, come over yourself."
"What the fuck are you posturing for? Hiding behind a mask, and you still dare show yourself? Eat my hammer!!!"
Yin Feng launched straight into abuse without any windup. His swinging meteor hammer stirred a breeze, and with a Sparrowhawk Flips Over the Mountain, he swung it straight at the man.
The man raised his hands, palms covered in calluses and thicker than an ordinary person's.
He caught Yin Feng's meteor hammer firmly, instantly making the gap between them clear.
His tone was disdainful. "Twenty-Four Forms of the Meteor Hammer? Nothing special. Foul-mouthed brat, get over here!!!"
The man yanked the hammerhead, dragging Yin Feng toward him with terrifying force. He raised a hand, circulated his qi, and thrust his palm out in a heavy, powerful strike glowing faintly gold.
Lu Ding instantly shifted sideways through the air.
"Then take a 'nothing special' from me too!!"
He thrust both palms forward, unleashing tens of thousands of jin of force in an instant.
The man dared not take it lightly. Switching from one hand to both, he likewise thrust his palms out. "Then have a taste of my Mighty Vajra Palm!"
Bang!!!
Their clashing palms produced an explosion in the air.
The sedan beneath the man's feet caved in, losing control on the highway. Lu Ding and the man both used the force to leap away and land elsewhere.
"Mighty Vajra Palm! You're Yuan Baifeng of the Heavenly Principle Sect!"
Wen Yuquan caught Yin Feng, whom Lu Ding had flung back, and exposed the snake-masked man's identity.
Yuan Baifeng's hands trembled as horror rose within him. His physical strength was already terrifying, and he practiced the Mighty Vajra Palm, one of Buddhism's secret arts.
His palms together possessed nearly ten thousand jin of force.
Moreover, he was at the Spirit Sea realm. From their exchange just now, he could roughly sense that Lu Ding should be at the Illuminating the Jade Pivot realm.
Yet a qi refiner at the Illuminating the Jade Pivot realm, so young, possessed even more terrifying physical strength than he did and had injured him in just one move.
Did that make any sense?
Hearing someone expose his identity, Yuan Baifeng simply dropped the pretense.
He tore off the cumbersome mask, swept both palms before him, and circulated his qi as he lifted them toward the heavens.
"Boy, I acknowledge your strength. In terms of physique, you're stronger than me. But my realm is higher than yours. Taking that palm strike of mine didn't feel good, did it?"
Lu Ding shook his hands. "It really wasn't very comfortable. You even made them red."
His terrifying strength of tens of thousands of jin was no joke. This man was nowhere near qualified to hurt him through physical strength alone.
Yuan Baifeng immediately felt humiliated. Made them red!?
Why didn't I smash your hands to pieces?
"Stubborn brat. Hand over the goods, and we'll call it a day. Otherwise..."
"Enough. I can't be bothered listening to your bullshit. I don't want to hear it."
Threats at every turn-it infuriated Lu Ding just listening. If he had the ability, he should come take it. If not, he should quit running his mouth. If talking alone could solve problems, what was Bureau 749 even for? They might as well replace everyone with negotiators.
He pushed the Wind-Calming Technique to its limit.
Lu Ding moved like a phantom, finding purchase in empty air.
A terrifying slash cut toward Yuan Baifeng.
Yuan Baifeng's aura surged. Golden light coated his palms, and without dodging or retreating, he struck straight at Lu Ding's slash.
He had thought that, with his advantage in realm and the gap in their ages, even if Lu Ding possessed a terrifying physique-
He had, after all, spent so many more years immersed in cultivation.
Surely he could catch a casual strike, no matter what?
Who could have known that the instant his palm struck it-
The pain of flesh being sliced immediately shot through him.
Half his palm was cut off.
Panic flickered in Yuan Baifeng's eyes. Looking up, he caught sight of the mocking smile on Lu Ding's face as he closed in.
Talking to him about age and disparities-wasn't that a joke?
Except for the Flying Bear Pouncing and Killing Method, all of Lu Ding's techniques were max-level skills granted directly by the system.
Achieving perfection in a technique was not something time and sweat alone could accomplish.
Yuan Baifeng had originally possessed some chance of victory.
But relying on his age and higher realm, he had insisted on taking Lu Ding's slash head-on, losing half a palm.
Fifty percent of his Mighty Vajra Palm abilities were instantly crippled.
"Mighty Vajra Palm? Come on, try this palm of mine!!!"
Using the Wind-Calming Technique, Lu Ding closed in on Yuan Baifeng at tremendous speed.
A savage aura emerged from him, and the entire image he presented changed. Behind him, a massive bear with wings on its back flickered in and out of sight, thrusting its palms forward in the same motion as Lu Ding.
The surrounding light and gentle breeze all retreated.
It was an extreme visual impact difficult to describe in words.
By now, Yuan Baifeng could no longer dodge. Recklessly trying to evade would only abandon his defenses and expose the best place for his enemy to strike.
Helpless, he could only endure the pain and thrust both palms out to block.
Who could have known that the instant their palms collided-
Yuan Baifeng's palms shattered as though made of tofu. Flesh burst apart, and his bones stabbed backward, piercing his shoulder blades.
Lu Ding's palm struck his chest and drove straight in, punching clean through.
His hand entered through the chest and emerged from the back, sending a mist of blood flying.
A single point breached the surface.
All the force penetrated his body.
Blood poured ceaselessly from Yuan Baifeng's mouth and nose.
Clinging to his final breath, he raised a hand and struck Lu Ding's chest, only to find that his remaining strength vanished like a clay ox entering the sea. Lu Ding did not even sway.
Seeing that he still had one last breath left-
Lu Ding drove the knife into his heart with his words. "Strength isn't decided by age. Your Mighty Vajra Palm was. Nothing. Special."
"Pfft!!!"
Yuan Baifeng could no longer suppress his injuries. He spat a mouthful of blood into a skyful of bloody mist, and his final trace of life faded. His corpse hung from Lu Ding's hand.